Cattle Market Pulse

Bluegrass Stockyard Market Report

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, February 28, 2024

255 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Bluegrass Stockyard report →

light 6-weight M&L 1-2 steers $260.85/cwt +10.71 vs last sale · ≈ $1,622/hd at 622 lb · 18 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $283.38/cwt +8.33 vs last sale · ≈ $1,482/hd at 523 lb · 15 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $247.04/cwt +4.72 vs last sale · ≈ $1,278/hd at 517 lb · 13 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 255 552 506
Feeder cattle 223 484 419
Slaughter cattle 27 57 60
Replacement cattle 5 11 27

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Wednesday feeder steers and heifers sold 5.00 to 10.00 higher in a light test. Some lightweight good quality weaned heifer packages traded sharply higher with very good demand. Slaughter cows lightly tested. Slaughter bulls sold 5.00 higher with very good demand.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–375 value added 365 2 342.00–382.50 $361.70 $1,320 +21.70
405–427 value added 420 8 327.50–372.50 $341.49 $1,434 +7.61
455–495 value added 478 9 280.00–330.00 $302.67 $1,447 +14.01
505–546 value added 523 15 262.00–308.00 $283.38 $1,482 +8.33
576–585 value added 581 9 260.00–275.00 $266.15 $1,546 -2.95
601–640 value added 621 17 249.00–265.00 $261.78 $1,626 +7.99
635 635 1 245.00 $245.00 $1,556 +5.80
678 value added 678 5 248.00 $248.00 $1,681 -4.75
700 value added 700 1 229.00 $229.00 $1,603 -27.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275 275 1 294.00 $294.00 $808 +6.50
317 317 2 295.00 $295.00 $935 —
370–385 378 2 250.00–265.00 $257.65 $974 —
410 410 1 250.00 $250.00 $1,025 —
495 495 1 240.00 $240.00 $1,188 +4.00
741 741 10 218.50 $218.50 $1,619 —
790 790 2 195.00 $195.00 $1,540 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
375 375 1 242.00 $242.00 $908 -8.00

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
297 297 2 296.00 $296.00 $879 +63.52
325–335 330 2 256.00–271.00 $263.61 $870 +32.30
370 370 1 255.00 $255.00 $944 +9.86
405–425 value added 414 10 246.00–264.00 $257.86 $1,068 -0.96
420 420 1 245.00 $245.00 $1,029 —
477–490 485 6 240.00–245.00 $242.15 $1,174 +0.97
496 value added 496 3 252.00 $252.00 $1,250 —
500–540 value added 516 8 249.00–265.00 $253.94 $1,310 +9.98
510–535 519 5 230.00–245.00 $236.01 $1,225 +8.41
557 557 2 241.00 $241.00 $1,342 +15.11
600–620 607 8 200.00–219.00 $211.30 $1,283 +2.62
610 value added 610 2 241.00 $241.00 $1,470 +5.86
655 655 1 210.00 $210.00 $1,376 +19.41
715 715 3 190.00–196.00 $192.00 $1,373 -18.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
250–290 270 2 237.50–262.00 $250.66 $677 +69.66
305–330 315 4 175.00–238.00 $217.55 $685 +17.55
375–395 386 7 207.50–245.00 $227.57 $878 —
485 485 3 230.00 $230.00 $1,116 +24.87
505 505 3 200.00 $200.00 $1,010 —
615 615 1 171.00 $171.00 $1,052 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
590 590 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,357 —
675 675 1 192.00 $192.00 $1,296 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
365 value added 365 1 330.00 $330.00 $1,204 +26.12
445 value added 445 1 346.00 $346.00 $1,540 +42.86
470–485 value added 475 3 270.00–284.00 $276.66 $1,314 -10.49
490 490 1 256.00 $256.00 $1,254 -2.08
505–512 value added 510 3 263.00–267.00 $264.32 $1,348 -2.68
530–535 533 2 240.00–250.00 $244.98 $1,306 -0.13
592 value added 592 2 259.00 $259.00 $1,533 +1.10
675 675 1 211.00 $211.00 $1,424 —
665–695 value added 680 2 225.00–229.00 $226.96 $1,543 —
700 value added 700 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,540 —
705–745 727 3 191.00–202.00 $197.92 $1,439 —
760 760 1 187.00 $187.00 $1,421 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335–345 340 2 255.00–260.00 $257.46 $875 -7.15
385 385 2 230.00 $230.00 $886 -20.00
405 405 1 251.00 $251.00 $1,017 —
475 475 1 240.00 $240.00 $1,140 +17.50
535 535 1 225.00 $225.00 $1,204 —
605–630 617 3 173.00–205.00 $188.12 $1,161 +2.12
660 660 1 194.00 $194.00 $1,280 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
395 395 1 218.00 $218.00 $861 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
780–1220 1008 85-90% 4 91.00–98.00 $93.44 $942 -7.00
945–1285 1095 85-90% 3 101.00–113.00 $106.34 $1,164 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1125–1270 1200 80-85% 3 104.00–113.00 $109.18 $1,310 —
1220 1220 80-85% 1 100.00 $100.00 $1,220 —
1175–1335 1235 80-85% 3 116.00–119.00 $117.69 $1,453 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1085–1345 1240 75-80% 3 108.00–113.00 $110.15 $1,366 —
1500–1680 1590 75-80% 2 118.00 $118.00 $1,876 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1310–2110 1592 3 116.00–122.00 $118.97 $1,894 —
1670–1860 1765 2 133.00–149.00 $141.43 $2,496 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1040–1280 1160 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 1,425.00–1,500.00 $1,466.38

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1365 1365 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 1,900.00 $1,900.00 —

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Reading this report

What does "Medium and Large 1" mean?

USDA feeder grades describe frame size and muscle thickness, not quality of the individual animal. "Medium and Large" is the frame score; the number is muscle (1 = heaviest muscled). "Medium and Large 1–2" pens mix both muscle scores — common across the Southeast.

What is $/cwt?

Dollars per hundredweight — per 100 lb of animal. A 500-lb calf at $450/cwt brings 5 × $450 = $2,250. Lighter cattle usually bring more per cwt but less per head.

Why are some prices per head?

Bred cows, cow-calf pairs, and some replacement classes sell by the head, not by weight. We show those exactly as USDA reports them — a $/head figure is never converted into $/cwt on this site.

Where do these numbers come from?

From the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service's Livestock Market News — federal reporters at the sale. We publish each report in full and link the official USDA document at the top of the page.